17 September 2010—In response to a request by the Government of Timor-Leste, this note provides an estimate of poverty prevalence in Timor-Leste for the year 2009 that is comparable with earlier estimates. It thus provides the Government a sounder basis for tracking progress toward a key Millennium Development Goal. Even though the country made significant strides in building state institutions and improving service delivery after 2001, non-oil economic activity decelerated as the emergency reconstruction phase ended and international presence in the country substantially reduced. All in all, the period 2001-07 saw a 12 percent decline in real non-oil GDP per capita. This note provides a prediction of poverty prevalence in Timor-Lests for 2009, which is comparable to earlier estimates. Those estimates were derived from the 2001 Timor-Leste Living Standards. | 
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